Can Anyone Love?
by Maverickmage
Summary: x-over with the anime I My Me Strawberry Eggs. The key to the heart of a person has been misused. Can another be trusted with it?


Disclaimer : I do not own I, My, Me Strawberry Eggs and I do not own Ranma 1/2.  
  
  
  
  
  
" Talking "  
/* Thinking*/  
  
  
  
Can Anyone Love?  
  
  
  
  
Prologue : Pains of Memories  
  
  
A figure lay in bed sleeping a fitful sleep. Turning and mumbling. He   
dreames of an events long past. Of times when he was the most happiest and of   
times he was most hurt. Cold sweat trickled down as his face as he continued to   
live out his nightmares. His short brown hair matted to his face. His dreams   
seems to reflect the weather as lightning flashes one moment with pouring rain,  
the next moment, quiet as death.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
A small pigtailed boy can be seen looking up to a large bald man, staring  
at the figure in awe. The man looks down and rubs his head and says, "You're   
going to become a great martial artist boy. The best. I can feel it." The two  
then continued to practice martial arts together. After hearing the voice, a   
feeling of pride bloomed in his chest. At the age of five, he showed great   
promises.  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
The boy stops his restless movements in his bed. His once fearful   
expression now becomes replaced by a small tentative smile.   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
The same pigtailed boy can now be seen again. Now around age seven. This  
time however, instead of the awe shown before, he wears a fearful expression. He   
seems to be in a forest of some sort. Around him, rain is pouring down . He is   
crouching inside of some sort of hole, shaking with fear.   
  
Suddenly the boy shouts with pain and his body is flung into a tree. From  
behind him a figure can be seen. It was the same large bald man who the boy had  
looked with adoration a moment before. He comes stumbling out of the shadow and  
it could be clearly shown that he was drunk.   
  
"Trying to hide from me boy? Are you some kind of a girl? Come over here  
and fight like a man!" The man yelled out. Saying this he lurched towards the   
boy who was standing up and knees him in the stomach. The boy doubles over   
spitting out blood. Before he could regain his senses from being hit so hard, he   
gets smashed down again. This beating continues...  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Now the smile is wiped off the sleeping boy's face and in its place are  
emotions of hurt, betrayle, anger, and confusion. A drop of tear flows out from  
one of his eyes as he lives through his past childhood again.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
The boy, now at age five again is shown happy. Crawling around the boy is  
a small puppy, barking and jumping around. They play with each other, tumbling  
around and around. A heart-warming sight. Laughing carelessly without a care in  
the world, it was a sight enough to make anyone smile.  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Slowly the harsh expressions on the boy's face melts away as he gives off  
a small chuckle. His breathing now returns back to normal and it seems that the  
nightmares finally passed.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
"What the hell do you think that you're doing boy!" Screaming at the top  
of his lungs, the tall fat man who appears in so much of his dreams stomped over  
and forcibly took the small cowering puppy from him.  
  
The boy shrieks and lunges and grabs onto the man's pants. "NO! DADDY!  
NO! I promise I'll be good... just... please don't kill him... Daddy..." Saying  
this, he sobbs still holding onto his father's pants' leg trying to stop him from  
moving.  
  
The man looks down at his son and his expression hardens. A flash of   
anger bolts across his face. "Look at you boy! Crying and screaming like a   
girl! That's what this stupid mutt's doing to you! A REAL man doesn't cry and  
beg over something so small."  
  
The boy realizes that his pleas won't do him any good but still tries to   
stop his father. Crying and begging, Ranma holds on even tighter. His father   
wears a disgusted expression on his face as he looks down at the pathetic sight  
before him. He kicks the boy away from him, flinging the small body against a   
tree.  
  
"You want this piece of trash boy? Then come and take it away from me!   
Hurry up and take it back before it dies!" Saying this, the father raised the   
small dog into the air by the scruff of its neck.   
  
The boy stands up quickly and runs to his father, trying to stop the man.  
Before the boy could do anything, the man kicks the boy in the solar plexus, once  
again flinging him into the tree. The small boy tries to stand up, gasping for  
breath and retching from being hit in the solar plexus.  
  
Seeing his son try to stand up, he gets a satisfied look on his face. He  
then gently lowers the dog. His son gets a relieved expression on his face. He   
opens his mouth to thank his father, but before he gets anything out, the man   
raises his arm quickly into the air and brings it down hard, hurling the dog onto  
the ground. Yelping the dog lies still. The horrified boy reaches for his dog,  
slowly moving his hand closer. Before he reaches the dog, his father brings his   
foot down onto the animals head, crushing in the skull. Then kicks the corpse   
into the campfire.  
  
"Too late boy..."  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Quietly, the boy cries in his sleep,   
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
There is a woman standing before the boy. She turns around and smiles at  
him. Seeing his tired expression, she leans down and picks him up into her arms.  
Laughing together, they walk home. She leans down and whispers, "My darling   
little man among men."   
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
The tears are still flowing from the sleeping boy. Happy memories no  
longer comforts the boy as it did before. Still, he whispers, "Man among men..."  
and his face softens somewhat.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
-* FLASH *-  
"I'm sorry son, but you can't come back home until you become a man among  
men." The woman says soothingly to her crying son, clutching onto her kimon.  
  
"But mom... I don't want to leave you! I want to stay with you!"   
  
The mother's face hardens and she slaps her son in the face. "You signed  
the contract. You must now honor it. Just by this behaviour alone, you are   
shaming your family! Never, ever, do anything like that again..."  
  
The boy could only hold his reddening cheek and stare at his mother in   
shock. Trembling he let go of his hold on her kimono and slowly walked away.  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
"A man among men..." He murmurs into his sleep. Tears now flow freely   
down his face.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
This time, instead of the small pigtailed boy, the sleeping figure is   
shown. Here, he stands before a girl who has an innocent expression not much   
older him.   
  
"I... I like you..." He says with a hint of fear in his voice.  
  
"I'm sorry..." Was all the girl could say. Yet, the small whispered   
answer echoed in his mind.  
  
-* FLASH *-  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Finally the sleeping figure opens his eyes and stares up at the ceiling.  
/*Boy! Crying in your sleep and all for a little girl... Pheh! I didn't raise  
you to be so weak. You're pathetic Ranma...*/ The words of his father echoes in  
his mind. A flash of anger passes through his eyes.  
  
His mind lashes out and in his mind he screams /*I'm not Ranma anymore!   
I'm not Ranma... That life ended when you threw me away you bastard! When you   
left me to die! I'm... I'm Fukae now, not Ranma... Fukae... */  
  
Turning onto his side, Fukae whispers, "Damn you pop..."  
  
  
  
  
//----------------------------------------------  
  
  
Author's Note: Hmmm... my mistake. I didn't realize that someone wrote I My Me!  
Strawberry Eggs crossover before. I was hoping someone would tell  
it to me before the author who rightfully claims that title. It  
seems you people did. Thanks!  
  
I know I've been advised against flashbacks/dreams and the little  
-*Flash*- thing, but sorry! I didn't know what to do otherwise.  
Just think of it like an anime where the screen really does flash  
and have a flashback when dreaming.  
  
I don't really hate the fat panda. Really. It's just that I had  
to make him a SOB in this fic for the story plot.  
  
For those of you that don't like angsty begginings, well tough!  
  
To those who are about to complain that you don't know what the   
hell is going on, well good! I started the story that way on   
purpose. I don't want you people to try and second guess every  
move. I want you to discover the characters as you read on.  
  
The above statements go for all of my other fics too. 


End file.
